Guyana Primed for National Development Sharad Aggarwal IB8710 – Georgia State University April 14, 2005

Location  Guyana = “Land of Many Rivers”  Northern Coast of South America  80 degrees

Quick Facts  Size: 214K square kilometers, 83K square miles  Population: 705,803 90% coastal  Average Annual Income: $860 USD  Religions: Christian, 50 percent; Hindu; Muslim; others  Life Expectancy: 62 years  Languages: English, Amerindian dialects, Creole, Hindi, Urdu  Ethnic groups: East Indian, 50 percent; African origin; Amerindian; white; Chinese; and mixed origin (Source: U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, World Factbook 2003)

The Good  Independence from Britain in 1966  Verified Functional Stable Democracy  English Speaking  High Literacy  Abundant Natural Resources  Large Hydropower Potential  Effective Social Infrastructure (Schools, Hospitals, Medical Centers)  125,000 Internet Users (2002)

The Bad   High 35% Poverty   Low Infrastructure (Poor Roads, Electricity, Telecom)   Unskilled Labor   Very High Emigration  80,400 (2002) Main line  87,300 (2002) Cell

The Ugly  Cultural Political Division:   Indo-Guyanese support the Peoples Progressive Party   African-Guyanese the Peoples National Congress   interventionist policies collapsed the economy   Emigration! Racism! Oh My!

Framework

Fix  Solicit Multinationals with Natural Resources  Hydropower?  Bi-Partisan Political Efforts  “Scourge” of Racism  IT Promotion